Method of and machine for making cigarettes



. .2 sheets-@sheet y1.

(No Model@j W. H. BUTLER'. METHOD 0F AND MACHINE FOR MAKINGUIGARETTBS.

Y Patented sept. 17,189.

Y NDHEW B.GHANAM. PNDTO-UTNQWASHINGTUN. DC.

('No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. H. BUTLER. MBTHUD 0F AND MACHINE FOR MAKING CIGARBTTES.

No. 546,637. Patented Sept. 17, 1895.

Ime 07".' y@

ANDREW BGRIHAM. PNUTO-UTHO-WASHIN ETDN, DI.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM H. BUTLER, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE BON' SACKMACHINE COMPANY, OF SALEM, VIRGINIA.

METHOD OF AND MACHINE FOR `MAKING CIGARETTES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 546,637, datedSeptember 17, 1895.

Application tiled May 9, 1892l Serial No. 432,334. (No model.) Patentedin France January 3 1894, No. 235,268; in Italy Fehruary23,1894,No.35,795/188; in Trinidad June 26, 1894; in Barhadoes July6,1894,No. 81; in Cape Colony July 12. 1894, No. 376 or 6/678; in NatalJuly 16,1894; in South African Republic July 18, 1894,1Io. 675, and inAustria June 14,

1895, No. l/2,150.

To all whom t may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. BUTLER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Brooklyn, county of Kings, and State of New 5 York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods ofv and Machinesfor Making Cigarettes, fully. described and represented in the followingspecification and the accompanying drawings, forming a part io of thesame, and for which I have obtained Letters Patent in France, No.235,268, dated January 3,1894; inItaly,No. 35,795/188, dated February23, 1894; in Trinidad, dated June 26, 1894; in Barbadoes, No. 81, datedJuly 6, 1894; in Cape Colony, No. 376 or 6/678, dated July 12, 1894; inNatal, dated July 16, 1894; in South African Republic, No. 675, datedJuly 18, 1894, and in Austria, No. 45/2,150,

dated June 14,1895. zo This invention relates to that class ofcigarette-machines in which the Wrapper in the form of a continuous webis Wrapped around a continuous ller and its edges united, after whichthe wrapper and the filler therein are 2 5 cut into suitable lengths toform cigarettes. In machines of this class the edges of the wrapper havegenerally been united by being overlapped and secured by pasting, anddifficulty has been found in drawing and securing the wrapper about thetobacco with sufficient tension to make the cigarette as solid asdesired. A

The especial object of the invention is to provide a machine by whichthe wrapper may be drawn to the required tension and secured by a strongseam, andI secure this result by turning the edges of thewrapperoutwardly or inwardly and folding or rolling them together, andthen pressing, crimping, 4o indenting, or perforating the rolled orfolded together wrapper-edges to complete the seam,`

and I preferably employ a support inside the Wrapper, on, which theedges of the wrapper are pressed down, and which forms one member of thepressing, crimping, indenting, or.

perforating devices, so thatthe seam is formed flat upon the cigarette.Iprefer to secure the wrapper, as above described, without the use ofpaste; but my invention includes an improved method and mechanism formaking 5o cigarettes having paste applied in connection with theformation of the seam.

For a full understanding of my invention a detailed description of amachine of the preferred formfor carrying out my improved method andembodying all the features of my invention will now be given, inconnection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of thisspecification, and the method and features of construction forming myin- 6o vention specifically pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a vertical sectional elevation of so muchof a cigarette- `making machine as isnecessary to illustrate theapplication of the present invention thereto. Fig. 2 is a plan view ofthe same.

Figs. 31:0 9 are cross-sections on respectively the lines 3 to 9 ofFig.p1, looking to the left. Fig. 10 is a detail of they crimping devicepreferably employed. Figs. 11 to 2O show a modi- 7o fied form of amachine in which the edges. of the wrapper are turned inwardly and theproduct of the same. Fig. 11 is a partial longitudinal section of themachine. Figs. 12 to 19 are cross sections of the same on re- 75spectively lines 12 to 19 of Fig. 11, looking to the left.A Fig. 2O is across-sectionfof the completed cigarette. Fig. 21 shows a modicationemploying pasting devices. Fig. 22 shows a modified form of seam-closingworm. Fig. 23 8o shows a perforating device which may be used in formingthe seam.

Referring to said drawings, A is the bedplate or table of the machine,which serves to support the operating parts. 8 5

B is kthe carrying-belt, by which the cigarette-wrapper x and filler yare advanced, the filler passing onto the wrapper from the fillerformingmechanism, of any suitable form or being formed by hand. The belt B iscarried 9o by belt-rolls 10, driven in any suitable manner, a pulley l1on the rear roll lO being shown for this purpose. As the wrapper withthe filler thereon is 'advanced by the belt B, the side edges of thewrapper are turned upward 9' 5 by guides 1 2 on opposite sides, and thefiller is pressed and compacted by means of grooved roller 12, lyinginside the turned-up edges of the wrapper in advance of the guides 1 2,and being driven bya belt 13, as shown, or in any other suitable manner.

In advance of the pressing-roll l2 a bracket with an overhanging arm letis mounted on the frame, and this arm 14 carries the interior support,which consists in the form shown of a finger 3, resting upon the fillerinside the turned-up edges of the wrapperand extending in the line ofmovement of the filler. The support 3 is shown as consisting of a platecurved about the top of the filler and extending through about half itscircumference, and this is the preferred form; but it may consist of anarrow, fiat, or curved plate or bar. The folder, by which the edges ofthe wrapper are folded over the filler and support 3 and overlapped,consists of two curved guides 4 5, carried by the arm 14, guide/1extending only a short distance in advance of the arm 14, and acting tobend inward the upturned edge of the wrapper on one side and guide ituntil both upturned edges are within the control of the guide 5 on theopposite side, which draws the wrapper tight about the filler andsupport 3 and turns down the overlapping edges, and preferably isconstructed, as shown,so as to fold or roll the edges together, a strongjoint being thus formed when the edges are pressed down, even withoutcrimping, indenting, or perforating. The operation of the guides 1 2 and4 5,in connection with the finger 3, will be readily understood fromFigs. 3 to S, showing successive stages of the operation.

Just in advance of the end of the guide 5 is mounted a groovedpressure-roller15,driven, as shown, by a belt 1G or in any othersuitable manner, this pressure-roll coacting with the support3 insidethe Wrapperto press down fiat the overlapped and rolled edges of thewrapper. It. may be found that the pressure of this roll is sufficientto secure the wrapper without other devices, orI may construct this rollso as to form a crimping, indenting, or perforating device, coactingwith the support 3 to secure the wrapper, the support 3 being plain orformed with grooves, indentations, or perforations, into which thewrapperis pressed by the roller, or the roller may be plain and thesupport be provided with suitable devices for crimping, indenting, orperforating the paper against the roll. I prefer, however, to use theroll 15 only for pressing down the edges of the wrapper and to providean independent crimping, indenting, or perforating device coacting withthe support 3 in advance of the roll, and I prefer to use the deviceshown, consisting of a worm-wheel 17, mounted to rotate transversely tothe cigarette-rod and driven by a belt 18 or in any other suitablemanner. The threads of this worm-wheel 17 are preferably of a pitchcorresponding to the movement of the advancing cigarette-rod, andpreferably have quite sharp edges, by which the layers of the wrapperformed bythe overlapping edges are crimped and firmly secured togetheras thc cigaretterod passes the worm-wheel. The end of the support 3 maybe plain and the wrapper be crimped simply by the pressure of thewormwheel against the plain surface; but I prefer to form the end of thesupport with grooves corresponding to the threads on the wormwheel, intowhich the Wrapper is pressed, as shown in Fig. 10. The thread ofthe worm17 may be smooth or ronghened to form teeth or pins by which the wrapperis indented or perforated, as shown in Fig. 22, and the construction ofthe end of the support 3 may bc varied correspondingly. It will beunderstood, also, that the wheel and support may be formed in any othersuitable manner, so as to crimp, indent, or perforate the wrapper bypressure between the wheel and support.

The continuous cigarette is advanced from the folding and crim ping,indenting, or perforating devices by the belt B and any suitable feedingmechanism coacting therewith or independent thereof. I have shown agrooved roll 19 coacting with belt-roll 10, and from the shaft of whichthe rolls 12 15 are driven, this shaft being driven by any suitablemeans, such as a gear 20, as shown.

NVhile it will be found that the wrapper is secured firmly withoutpasting by the devices shown, it is evident that I may use paste, ifdesired, and that my invention provides a very simple, convenient, andefficient method and machine for making pasted cigarettes. Thus in theconstruction shown it is necessary only to mount a suitablepaste-fountain to deliver paste to the worm-wheel 17 or other crimping,indenting, or perforating device, the paste being transferred to thewrapper and pressed therein by means of the sharp edges of theworm-wheel or the teeth or pins of the indenting or perforating device,a very small amount of paste being thus sufficient. Such a constructionis shown in Fig. 21, in which a paste-fountain 2l is mounted above theworm 17, and paste is delivered therefrom to the worm-wheel byfountain-roll 22 and paste-roll 23, the latter engaging the worm andbeing driven by friction or positively, as preferred.

In the construction above described the edges of the wrapper are turnedoutwardly to form the seam; butthis is not necessary, and I have shownin Figs. 11 to 2O a construction in which the edges are turned inwardlyand then folded or rolled together and secured by crimping, indenting,or perforating. In this construction the roller 12 is preferably madeconvex, so as to form a recess for the guides by which the edges of thewrapper are folded or rolled together and the interior support againstwhich they are secured. The exterior side guides a b are made continuousthroughout and operate, as the guides 1 2 3 4.- of the constructionpreviously described, to fold the wrapper about the filler; but theirconstruction is Varied so as to coact with interior side guides to turnthe edges lOD IIO

of the wrapper inward instead of outward. The interior guides c d arecarried by thearm 14, and are gradually curved inward over the fillerwith the exterior side guides ab, the edges of the wrapper lying betweenthe exterior and interior guides and being gradually closed over thefiller. -The exterior guide t is provided with a wing 6, curvinggradually inward and coacting with wings' 7 8 on interior guides c d, s0as to turn -tWo edges of the Wrapper inward and roll or fold themtogether, as shown in Figs. 14 to 16. When the edges have been thusfolded or rolled together, the guides a b c terminate, but the wing S oftheguide d is prolonged and curved over the top of the filler, so as toform a concave finger e, whichvis the interior support against which theedges of the paper are pressed down and secured.

The position of the edges of the wrapper, after they have been rolled orfolded together and released from the guides, and that of the interiorsupport e, is shown in Fig. 17.

The roller 15 is mounted in advance of the ends of the guides, as in theconstruction previously described; but in this construction the rolleris preferably made convex, so as to press down the folded or rollededges of the Wrapper into the recess or chamber formed by the concavesupporte, the wrapper thus being drawn tightly about the filler, aidingin securing the result desired of a iirm solid cigarette. The support eand roller 15 may be used to secure the wrapper together by pressure orby crimping, indenting, or perforating, as previously described; but inthis construction, also, I preferably use the roller l5 only topressdown the edges and employ an independent crimping, indenting, or'perforating device. These devices may be the same as previouslydescribed, consisting of a Worm 17, coacting with the end of the supporte, which is suitably formed for this purpose; but I have shown aconstruction in which the support e is provided with a recess or holder,in which runs a roller 9, the recess and holder being preferably formedso that the roller is held therein without a shaft and rotates freely byfriction with a roller 24, mounted and driven in any suitable manner.The rolls 9 24 may be formed in any suitable manner, so as to crimp,indent, or perforate the edges and secure them together, both of therollers being of special construction for this purpose, or either one ofthem may be plain. It will be understood, also, that in place of theroll 9 I may use a ball mounted in the holder on the support or a Wormmounted in the holder, so as to rotate transversely to the travel vofthe cigarette andcoacting with the worm 17, of the constructionpreviously described.

In Fig. 23 I have shown a modified construction, in which the support 3is provided with a series of small perforations registering with pins orsharp-pointed teeth on a roll 24 outside the wrapper.

The machine shown in Figs. 11 to 1.9 is

claimed specifically in a companion application, Serial No. 432,914,tiled May 13, 1892. It will be understood, also, that I may use anyothersuitable devices for crimping,indenting, or perforating the edgesof the Wrapper..

What I claim is- 1. The method of making a cigarette which consists inadvancing a continuous wrapper and a continuous filler, rolling orfolding the edges of the wrapper together, and pressing, crimping,indentingr or perforating them together and applying paste,substantially as described.

2. The method of making a cigarette, which consists in advancing acontinuous Wrapper and a continuous filler thereon, folding the wrapperabout the filler and an interior support, rolling or folding the edgesof the Wrapper together, and securing the edges by pressing, crimping,indenting or perforating them against the interior support and applyingpaste in the indentations, substantially as described.

3. The combination with feeding devices for advancing a continuouscigarette wrapper and filler, of folding devices for folding the Wrap:per over the filler with its edges rolled or folded together, pressing,crimping, indenting or perforating devices acting on opposite sides ofthe rolled or folded edges, and pasting devices, substantially asdescribed.

4. The combination with feeding devices for advancing a continuouscigarette wrapper and filler, of an interior support, folding devicesfor folding the wrapper over the filler and support with its edgesvrolled or folded together, a crimping, indenting or perforating deviceco-acting with the support to securethe edges, and pasting devices forapplying paste to said crimping, indenting or perforating devices,substantially as described.

5. The combination with feeding devices for advancing a continuouscigarette wrapper and filler, of an interior support, folding devicesfor folding the wrapper over the filler and support With its edgesrolled or folded together, a pressing device co-acting withthe interiorsupport to press down the edges, and a crimping, indenting orperforating devlce coacting with the support to secure the edges,substantially as described.

6. VThe combination with feeding devices, of folding devices for foldingthe wrapper and rolling or folding the edges together, and pressing,crimping, indenting or perforating devices acting on opposite sides ofthe rolled or folded edges and including as one member a crimping Worm,substantially as described.

7. The combination with feeding devices for advancing a continuouscigarette wrapper and filler therein with the edges of the wrapperengaged, of an interior support inside the wrapper, and a crimping wormcoacting with said support to secure the edges, substantially asdescribed.

8. The combination with feeding devices, of an interior support, foldingdevices for fold- IOO IIO

ing the wrapper over the support and rolling or folding the edgestogether, and a crimping worm co-acting with said support to secure theedges, substantially as described.

D. The combination with feeding devices, of an interior support formedor provided with a worm thread, folding devices for folding thewrapperover the support and rolling or folding the edges together, and awheel rotating transversely to the line of feed co-acting with the worinthread on the support to secure the edges, substantially as described.

10. The combination with feeding devices, of an interior su pport formedor provided with a worm thread, folding devices for folding the wrapperover the support and rolling or folding the edges together, and a wormwheel rotating transversely to the line of feed co-acting with the wormthread on the support to secure the edges, substantially as described.

11. The combination with feeding devices for advancing a continuouscigarette wrapper and filler therein, of the interior support 3,

guides 4, constructed to turn the edges of the wrapper outwardly androll or fold them together on the support, roller co'acting with thesupport to press down the edges, and a crimping device co-aeting withthe support to crimp, indent or perforate the edges, substantially asdescribed.

12. The combination with feeding devices, of the interior support 3,guides L1, 5 construeted to turn the edges of the wrapperoutwardly androll or fold them together, on the support, roller 15 co-acting with thesupport to press down the edges, and crimping worin 17 co-acting withthe support to secure the edges, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing Witnesses.

XVM. ll. BUTLER.

\Vitnesses:

J. M. W. HICKS, C. J'. SAWYER.

